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The Wall of Jericho Shall Fall Down Flat,
Part I Praise ye the Lord, For we know that the Lord, We know that the Lord, Shalom aleichem to all of you who have traveled from far and near to celebrate the Twenty-Sixth Annual Feast of Weeks, in the solar year 6009. I welcome you. And, again, I welcome you to this new seminar series entitled, "The Wall of Jericho Shall Fall Down Flat." This is part one. The basis of this seminar solely derives from the book of Joshua, Chapter 6. Within Joshua, Chapter 6 is an extraordinary story about an event that very few people understand, and that very few people can logically interpret today. So to have some idea of what this seminar series will be about, it is imperative that we first read Joshua, Chapter 6, verses 1 through 5. These verses pretty much summarize the main points for this seminar as well as provide us with some specific instructions given to Joshua, a servant of the Lord, [1] Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in.Now if we continue to read--immediately following Joshua, Chapter 6, verses 1 through 5--the next verses explain exactly how these specific instructions given to Joshua by [6] And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests, and said unto them, Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of the Lord,This is one of the most inexplicable Scriptures in the Old Testament of the Bible, and yet it is one of the most powerful and phenomenal. Have you ever heard or read about the story of Jericho before today? Have you ever thought, "How did the Israelites cause the wall of Jericho to fall down flat by compassing a city for seven days, blowing trumpets of rams' horns, and shouting on the seventh day?" If you read this story literally, then it defies the imagination: that the literal wall of a city fell down flat by some people compassing it, blowing rams' horns, and shouting. So in this seminar, we shall dedicate ourselves to the mission of determining what these Scriptures really mean from another perspective. Now, to let you know ahead of time, like many events in the Bible, this event is written in a story form that is past tense, but is a foreshadowing of a future event that we--the Hebrew Israelites, the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Israel)--shall fulfill in our lifetime. And we shall prove this statement to be "true" as we progress in this seminar. To set a good premise for this seminar, it is necessary to lay down a solid foundation. So what we first want to do is familiarize you with Jericho by first establishing where Jericho is and what represents Jericho today. With that said, the only way to approach this subject is by gathering as much background information on the word "JERICHO" as attainable. Therefore, we shall seek the opinion of some of the most renowned references available--the dictionaries. In conferring with The Oxford Universal Dictionary, copyright 1955, on page 1062, Jericho is rendered as "a place of concealment." From this same reference source, on page 360, the word concealment is referenced as "mystery." Based upon the brevity of these facts, we can affirm that Jericho is a place of mystery or a mysterious place. Let us continue on our quest by defining the word mystery. On page 1305 of The Oxford Universal Dictionary, copyright 1955, a mystery is denoted as "something that is only known through divine revelation." Accordingly, it can be deduced, even further, that Jericho is a place that can only be known through "divine" revelation. Praise Moreover, in the World's Bible Dictionary, Student Edition, copyright 1990, on page 209 it states that "Jericho is best known as the site that Israel first conquered in their entrance into the land of Canaan." In The Synonym Finder, by J. I. Rodale, copyright 1978, on page 116, the word site is synonymous to "city." Hinged on these facts, it can be established that Jericho is best known as the city that Israel first conquered in their entrance into the land of Canaan. What is the land of Canaan? Canaan is the land that And I [This can also be verified in Leviticus, Chapter 25, verse 38: I am the Lord,And in Numbers, Chapter 34, verse 2: Command the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land of CANAAN; (this is the land that shall fall unto you for an inheritance, even the land of Canaan with the coasts thereof:)The American Heritage Talking Dictionary, copyright 1997, Computer Software, states that Canaan "in the Old Testament is referred to as the Promised Land." Therefore, without a shadow of doubt, it can be concluded that JERICHO was a city in CANAAN--the PROMISED LAND to the children of Israel. Now let us take a moment to review history. History is always bound to repeat itself. In the past, our forefathers disobeyed the commandments, judgments, laws, and statutes of And the Lord,For this reason, we are once again in slavery to another people in another land. Only this time we are in America, which is much like Egypt. And, again, we are very much in need of "divine" deliverance. And just as In The New Strong's Complete Dictionary of Bible Words, copyright 1996, on page 386, the Hebrew transliteration for Joshua is Yehowshua, pronounced yeh-ho-shoo-ah, and is described as "the [Hebrew] leader." Yehowshua comes from the reference number 3467. Reference number 3467 in Hebrew is yasha, pronounced yaw-shah, and it means "deliver (-er) and save (-iour)." In the present time, And Joshua Chapter 6 tells us the very first thing that we must do when we enter again into CANAAN--the PROMISED LAND. We must first conquer Jericho a city in CANAAN--by compassing the city, blowing trumpets of rams' horns, and shouting until the wall falls down flat--just as our forefathers and predecessors did. This is why it was said in the beginning that Joshua Chapter 6 is a foreshadowing of a future event that we shall perform in our lifetime. Now with that established, let us reveal more about the identity of Jericho. The Webster's New World Encyclopedia, copyright 1993, states this about Jericho: "In the Old Testament it was the stronghold of the Canaanites destroyed by the Israelites." The word Canaanite, singular of the plural word Canaanites, according to the Webster's New World Dictionary of American Language, copyright 1960, on page 211, is described as "a member of the people inhabiting Canaan." A Canaanite is also documented in The Oxford Universal Dictionary, copyright 1955, on page 255, as "no true Israelite." Based on these definitions, we can conclude that Jericho shall be the STRONGHOLD for a group of people inhabiting CANAAN. And in simple language, when we enter again into our land, there shall be some people inhabiting or living in our land, biblically described as CANAANITES, who are no true Israelites, and we shall have to destroy their STRONGHOLD. So what is a STRONGHOLD? The Synonym Finder, by J. I. Rodale, copyright 1978, on page 1178, denotes a stronghold as a "tower or headquarters." The Webster's New World Dictionary & Thesaurus, copyright 1998, Computer Software, defines tower as "as something fortied." Fortified, in the same reference source, is characterized as "strong"; while, strong means "powerful and mighty." Additionally, the word headquarters, a synonym of stronghold, is also defined in the aforementioned Webster's New World Dictionary & Thesaurus, as "the administration"; and administration is another word for "the government." In light of these definitions, we can firmly assert that when we enter again into CANAAN--the PROMISED LAND--then we shall have to destroy the powerful and mighty government that shall be located in the city of Jericho. And the manner in which we shall go about this is by doing what [3] And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war, and go round about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days.Now before we can get into the instruction that Now Jericho [the city of the powerful and mighty government of the Canaanites--those inhabiting the land, who are no true Israelites] was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in.In this verse, we learn that Jericho, which is the city of the powerful and mighty government of the Canaanites--those who are inhabiting our land, who are no true Israelites--shall be straitly shut up because of us, the children of Israel. In fact, none went out, and none came in. The New Strong's Complete Dictionary of Bible Words, copyright 1996, on page 684, references the word straitly (reference number 4183) in Greek as polus, pronounced pol-oos, and it means "altogether." Altogether is another way of saying "entirely or completely, as referenced in the Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, copyright 1999, Computer Software. Hence, we can validate that when we shall enter again into CANAAN--the PROMISED LAND--then Jericho--the city, and, in particular, the powerful and mighty government of the Canaanites, those inhabiting our land, who are no true Israelites--shall be entirely or completely "SHUT UP." What does this mean? The expression shut up in The New Strong's Complete Dictionary of Bible Words, copyright 1996, on page 461, is rendered in Hebrew as cagar, pronounced saw-gar, and means "to stop." In The Oxford Universal Dictionary, copyright 1955, on page 2029, stop means "to come to a standstill." Thus, the city of Jericho, and, in particular, the powerful and mighty government of the Canaanites--those inhabiting our land, who are no true Israelites--shall come to an entire or complete standstill because of us, the children of Israel. A standstill is described in the Webster's New World Dictionary & Thesaurus, copyright 1998, Computer Software, as "difficulty." According to Webster's New World College Dictionary, copyright 2001, on page 403, difficulty is "a state of being troubled or distressed." From these facts, it can be resolved that when we, the children of Israel, shall enter again into CANAAN--the PROMISED LAND then the city of Jericho, and, in particular, the powerful and mighty government of those inhabiting our land, shall come to a state of being completely troubled and entirely distressed. In The Oxford Universal Dictionary, copyright 1955, on page 2254, troubled means "unable to function to full capacity because of worry or concern"; while distressed in the American Heritage Talking Dictionary, copyright 1997, Computer Software, means "to feel insecure; to be fretful." In light of these facts, the city of Jericho, and, in particular, the powerful and mighty government of those inhabiting our land will be unable to function to full capacity because they will be completely worried and entirely concerned about us, the children of Israel. In fact, our entry into CANAAN, and, in particular, JERICHO, shall make the powerful and mighty government feel completely insecure; and, too, they will be very fretful because of us, the children of Israel. The Merriam Webster's 11th Collegiate Dictionary, copyright 2003, Computer Software, defines because of as "by reason of." Reason in the New Oxford American Dictionary, copyright 2001, Computer Software, is depicted as "a cause or explanation." Therefore, they shall come to a state of being greatly worried, deeply concerned, extremely insecure, and exceedingly fretful, so much so that they will not be able to function to full capacity. And the cause or explanation for this state will be the children of Israel. So let us answer why they shall be so greatly worried, deeply concerned, extremely insecure, and exceedingly fretful of us that they will not be able to function to full capacity by going to Joshua, Chapter 2, verses 1 through 2. This will show us what happened in those days with our forefathers, which will be likewise for us. These Scriptures bring it straight to the main point. Let us read: [1] And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to SPY secretly, saying, Go view the land [CANAAN], even JERICHO. And they went, and came into an harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there.Now Joshua (Yehowshua) sent out two men of the children of Israel to spy out the land of Canaan, saying "Go view the land,...even Jericho.' " Joshua (Yehowshua) said, "even Jericho." In the Webster's New World Dictionary & Thesaurus, copyright 1998, Computer Software, the word even is defined as "precisely." In this same reference source, precisely is another word for "specifically." Therefore, Joshua (Yehowshua) sent out two men of the children of Israel to view the land of Canaan, and, specifically, he wanted them to view JERICHO. The New Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, Greek Dictionary, copyright 1990, translates the word spy in Greek as ragal, pronounced raw-gal, and it means "to view." View in The Oxford Universal Dictionary, copyright 1955, on page 2356, is indicated as "to explore (a land)." The New Oxford American Dictionary, copyright 2001, Computer Software, references explore as "to travel in (an unfamiliar country) in order to learn about or familiarize oneself with it." It can be understood from these definitions that Joshua (Yehowshua) sent out two men of the children of Israel to travel into the land of CANAAN (an unfamiliar country), and specifically into Jericho, in order to learn about or familiarize themselves with the land. Now let us read Joshua, Chapter 2, verse 2 again: And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men in hither to night of the children of Israel to SEARCH OUT the country. In the Webster's New World Dictionary & Thesaurus, copyright 1998, Computer Software, search out means "to pursue." In the same reference source, pursue means "to watch over carefully in order to overtake." In other words, it was told to the King of Jericho that the children of Israel were in the land of CANAAN--the PROMISED LAND, and that they were, specifically, in JERICHO, watching over it carefully that they might overtake it. Now are you beginning to see why the city of Jericho, and, in particular, the powerful and mighty government of the Canaanites--those who are inhabiting our land, who are no true Israelites--shall be greatly worried, deeply concerned, extremely insecure, and exceedingly fretful? Just like it was with our ancestors, when they--the powerful and mighty government of Jericho today--shall hear that we are in the land then they, too, like past rulers of Jericho will know why we are there. They will understand that we are in Jericho to watch over our land so that we may "overtake it." But we are not going to overtake it the American way--with violence and guns. No, we are going to compass it for seven days, blow trumpets of rams' horns, and shout. Now to really sum it all up, let us read what Rahab, the harlot--who was hiding the two men of the children of Israel--said unto them. It is written in Joshua, Chapter 2, verses 9 through 11: [9] And she said unto the men, I know that the Lord,These Scriptures authenticate that our terror shall fall upon them and all the inhabitants of the land shall faint because they know or shall come to learn that [10] For we have heard how the Lord,The Microsoft Encarta Reference Library, copyright 1993-2003, Computer Software, defines terror as "intense or overwhelming fear." In the same reference source, faint means "to become weak"; while, weak is characterized as "to not feel powerful or strong." Based on these definitions, we can assert that when So let us return to Joshua, Chapter 6, verse 1, and affirm what the city of Jericho, and, particularly, the powerful and mighty government shall do while in a state of great worry, deep concern, extreme insecurity, and exceeding fretfulness of the children of Israel. Read Joshua, Chapter 6, verse 1: Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in.Our next part of this Scripture to decode is " ...none went out, and none came in." Notice that a colon separates this Scripture (:) in part. In the Chamber's 21st Century Dictionary, copyright 1996, on page 270, a colon (:) "introduces a part of a sentence that expands on what comes before." On page 459 of the same reference source, to expand on means "to give additional information." Therefore, "...none went out, and none came in" gives us some additional information about the city of Jericho--the mighty and powerful government of those inhabiting it--being in a state of great worry, deep concern, extreme insecurity, and exceeding fretfulness because of the children of Israel. The word none, according to the American Heritage Talking Dictionary, copyright 1997, Computer Software, means "not one person." In the Merriam Webster's 11th Collegiate Dictionary, copyright 2003, Computer Software, went is the past tense of "go." Therefore, not one person will "go out." In the Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, copyright 1953, on page 354, the phrase go out, under the word go, means "to make known or reveal to the public; to expose to the world." Thus, we can determine that the city of Jericho, and, in particular, the powerful and mighty government of those inhabiting it shall be so greatly worried, deeply concerned, extremely insecure, and exceedingly fretful that not one person will make known or reveal to the public that the children of Israel shall have entered into the PROMISED LAND. In plain English, they will want to keep our entrance again into CANAAN--the PROMISED LAND-- a hush-hush. Our entrance into the PROMISED LAND will strike such overwhelming terror in them and will have them so intensely fearful that they will not want to expose it to the world. In addition, "...none came in." In The Oxford Universal Dictionary, copyright 1955, come is the present tense of came, and on page 346, come is defined as "to enter into; to come to know." In, as documented in the Chamber's 21st Century Dictionary, copyright 1996, on page 681, means "inside." On page 702, inside is "confidential information by those in authority; top secret." In light of these facts, we can also determine that the city of Jericho, and, in particular, the powerful and mighty government--those in authority--shall see to it that not one person enters into or comes to know confidential information concerning the children of Israel's entrance into CANAAN, and in particular, into Jericho. Out of intense fear and overwhelming terror of how we shall reclaim all the land of CANAAN again, including Jericho, they shall keep our entrance into the PROMISED LAND a top secret. With that said, let us read Joshua, Chapter 6, verse 2: And the Lord,See is defined in the Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, copyright 1999, Computer Software, as "to understand; to be aware of." So just as Give, the base of given, is documented in the Chamber's 21st Century Dictionary, copyright 1996, on page 566, as "to transfer ownership of something; to transfer possession of something." Thus, The Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, copyright 1953, on page 374, defines hand "as power or authority." Even further, Another word for the word king is "ruler," as documented in the Roget's International Thesaurus, Fifth Edition, copyright 1992, page 449 (reference number 575.8). And in The New Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, Greek Dictionary, copyright 1990, the phrase mighty man (reference number 1368) is rendered in Hebrew as gibbowr, pronounced ghib-bore', and is described as "warrior." According to The Synonym Finder, by J. I. Rodale, copyright 1978, on page 1334, warrior is synonymous to "soldier, fighter." The Oxford Universal Dictionary, copyright 1955, on page 2332, describes valor as "strength or boldness in battle." Hence, not only shall In our next seminar, we shall begin to decode the instructions that We shall approach this subject by continuing to decode Joshua, Chapter 6, beginning with verse 3. It reads: And ye shall compass the city, all ye men of war, and go round about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days.I thank |